Key Lime Pie
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Bright, tangy, and ultra-creamy, this key lime pie has just the right balance of sweet and tart—perfect for warm days and easy entertaining.
I use ordinary supermarket limes, also known as Persian limes, to make my “Key lime” pie. Unless you live in the Florida Keys, true key limes are near impossible to find. Furthermore, they’re so tiny that you’d need to juice at least twenty of them for this recipe. No thank you! Ordinary limes make an exceptional Key lime pie, and they’re a much better alternative to bracingly tart bottled Key lime juice. This pie tastes every bit as authentic as the real deal—plus it’s easier to make.
Key lime pie can be made with a graham cracker crust or a traditional pie crust. I always opt for a graham cracker crust because it’s quick to prepare. Plus, why fuss with finicky pie dough when a graham cracker crust tastes so good?
“Off the charts delicious! The brown sugar in the crust is *chefs kiss* and the tart, creaminess of this pie is next-level.”
What You’ll Need To Make Key Lime Pie
- Crust: Made from finely crushed graham crackers, light brown sugar, and melted butter, the crust is buttery and lightly sweet, with just enough structure to hold the filling.
- Filling: Sweetened condensed milk gives the pie its creamy texture and sweetness (don’t confuse it with evaporated milk), while Greek yogurt adds a subtle tang. Fresh lime juice and zest provide bright citrus flavor. You’ll need about 8 to 10 plump limes; zest them before juicing and expect roughly 2 tablespoons of juice per lime.
- Topping: Lightly sweetened whipped cream adds a pillowy topping, with a bit of lime zest for freshness and thin lime slices for garnish.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
How To Make Key Lime Pie
Step 1: Make the crust mixture. Combine the graham cracker crumbs, brown sugar, and melted butter in a mixing bowl. Start by stirring with a fork, then use your hands to mix until everything is evenly combined.
Step 2: Form the crust. Using your fingers and the bottom of a measuring cup or glass, press the crumbs firmly into the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch deep-dish pie pan. Aim for a crust about ¼ inch thick.
Pro tip: form the sides first, then press in the bottom.
Step 3: Blind bake the crust. Bake the crust for about 10 minutes, until it’s lightly browned. This quick bake helps set the crust so it stays crisp once the filling is added. Let it cool slightly while you make the filling.
Step 4: Zest and juice the limes. Start by zesting the limes. A rasp grater (the long, skinny kind shown below) works best for this and makes quick work of citrus zest. Then juice the limes using a citrus reamer.
Step 5: Make the filling. In a large bowl, whisk together the sweetened condensed milk, yogurt, lime zest, and lime juice. With no eggs, it may be hard to believe that this pie will set, but have faith—it will.
Step 6: Fill and bake the pie. Pour the filling into the baked graham cracker crust and smooth the top. Bake for about 15 minutes, until the filling is just set. Let the pie cool at room temperature for about 30 minutes, then transfer it to the refrigerator to chill completely, about 3 hours.
Step 7: Make the whipped cream topping. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (or beaters), beat the heavy cream until soft peaks form. Add the confectioners’ sugar and beat until medium peaks form. (Alternatively, the cream can be beaten by hand with a whisk.)
Step 8: Assemble and serve. Within a few hours of serving, top the chilled pie with the whipped cream and decorate with lime slices and zest. Enjoy!
Key Lime Pie Video Tutorial
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Key Lime Pie
Ingredients
For the Crust
- 1½ cups finely crushed graham cracker crumbs, from about 12 whole graham crackers
- ⅓ cup (packed) light brown sugar
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
For the Filling
- Two 14-oz cans sweetened condensed milk
- 1 cup plain Greek yogurt (2% or whole milk)
- 1 tablespoon grated lime zest
- ¾ cup fresh lime juice
For the Topping
- 1 cup cold heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar
- 1 teaspoon grated lime zest
- 8 to 10 thin lime slices
Instructions
- Make the Crust: Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C) and set an oven rack in the middle position.
- In a medium bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, brown sugar, and melted butter; stir with a fork first, and then your hands until the mixture is well combined. Using your fingers and the bottom of a glass or dry measuring cup, press the crumbs firmly into the bottom and up the sides of a 9 x 1½-in (23 x 4-cm) pie pan. The crust should be about ¼-in (6-mm) thick. (Tip: do the sides first.)
- Bake for 10 minutes, until just slightly browned. Let the crust cool on a wire rack.
- Make the Filling: Lower the oven temperature to 350°F (180°C). In a large bowl, whisk together the sweetened condensed milk, yogurt, lime zest, and lime juice. Pour the thick mixture into the warm graham cracker crust. Bake for 15 minutes, until the filling is almost set; it should wobble a bit. Let cool at room temperature for 30 minutes, then place in the refrigerator to chill thoroughly, about 3 hours.
- Make the Topping: In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the heavy cream until soft peaks form. Add the confectioners’ sugar and beat until medium peaks form. Top the pie with the whipped cream. Decorate with the lime zest and lime slices. Store the pie in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Slice the pie into wedges, wiping your knife clean between slices, and serve cold.
Notes
- Make-Ahead Instructions: You can make the crust a day ahead of time, but the filling should be added on the day of serving, otherwise the crust will get soggy.
- The nutritional information was calculated using 2% Greek yogurt.
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Most delicious key lime pie I’d ever had! I made it exactly like you said. My husband who doesn’t even particularly like this kind of pie said it was my best pie yet. Thank you so much for this recipe.
This recipe is super easy & so very yummy! Silky smooth with a nice crunch from the crust! It was so easy that I thought for sure it was missing some ingredients but it’s not.
I doubled it to make two pies, and ended up with enough filling leftover to make a third (yay!). Super simple and completely delicious. Huge hit at Easter.
This recipe is so amazing! I would love to try a chocolate cream pie version using the sweetened condensed milk and Greek yogurt. Its just so good! I use this recipe whenever I want a fool-proof dessert.
Love this recipe, so do my customers. I have a small bakery business here in New Zealand and its one of our favorite pies to make. So simple and quick to make as well. Cheers Jenny,
Sweet Dreams Bakery Foxton, New Zealand
Thank you so much! Every recipe I’ve tried from you has been delicious! So many compliments. This key lime pie is out of this world
I made this for my brother’s birthday. He’s a chef and it’s intimidating to cook for him. He requested a key lime pie for his birthday dessert and I am an amateur baker at best. I researched recipes and I was encouraged by the reviews saying that even picky key lime pie aficionados enjoyed this pie. I couldn’t find key limes, so this recipe stood out because I did want to use fresh lime juice. I used 10 fresh limes (they were not super juicy, but we bought them at the local farmer’s market) and the juice of 3 small Clementines to make a total of 1 cup of juice. I also added about 2 tbsp (an extra tbsp) of finely grated lime zest to punch up the flavor. I used a 9-inch springform pan & for the crust, I added an extra tbsp or so of butter (the crust was a little too sandy to form without the extra tbsp of butter). I had some leftover filling after adding the filling to the top of the crust, but, the filling is tasty & is excellent when used in a granola parfait (try Coast to Coast Granola) with berries. I baked essentially as directed, but did not add the whipped topping as my brother doesn’t like sweet desserts and this was going to be transported. I added the sweeter juice of the Clementines to even out the tartness without the whipped topping. Even without the topping, my awesome, but picky foodie brother LOVED the pie. So much so that he wants me to make it for him again this weekend. Thank you, Jenn. I’m trying it with key limes and oranges tomorrow as that’s what I picked up at the market this time. I am so thrilled to have this go-to recipe that I know even discerning palates will like. 🙂
Such an incredible recipe! Didn’t change a thing!! It’s so light and delicious. Made this for Easter and it was just wonderful! Everyone loved it!
This is an excellent Key Lime Pie! In fact my husband who has been in Florida and eating Key Lime Pies since 1966 says this is his “new favorite” of all Key Lime pies eaten! Needless to say I printed the recipe to have on hand! I, since from Florida, did use Key Limes, but after squeezing a whole bag went to the Persian Limes to make 3/4 cup, (whole bag of Key Limes made a little over 1/2 cup.) It is delicious! If you like Key Lime Pie you should love this!
Light and delicious and so easy to make. Made for Easter and everyone raved about it! Used whole fat Greek yogurt and the consistency was really nice and firm.